The result was a three-game sweep (at least the A’s finally scored a run, unearned though it was), and the first adversity this group has faced. The A’s hadn’t been swept in a series this season, and their three-game skid matches their longest.

It’ll be interesting to see how they respond. They go to Atlanta now, and the Braves have been baseball’s best home team. They’ve got a .400 hitter in Chipper Jones, and Tim Hudson has been dynamite. Should be a very tough series.

Most good teams keep losing streaks to a minimum, and the A’s have the pitching to keep losing streaks short. That said, don’t panic if the Braves add to their troubles. There’s still a long season ahead, no matter what, and another rough series doesn’t mean the A’s early-season success was a fluke.

As for the start of interleague, hard to tell how that will or will not benefit the A’s. They’re 18-18 against NL teams the past two seasons. They took two of three from the Braves in 2005 in their only other visit to Atlanta.